


Put Thy Rapier up

by FrenchKey, JayofOlympus



Series: WinterHawk Week 2019 [1]
Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Abuse of Shakespeare, Alternate Universe - Theatre, Flirting, Gender-Neutral Pronouns, Idiots in Love, M/M, Nonbinary Character, Swordplay, Winterhawk Week, puns
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-21
Updated: 2019-09-21
Packaged: 2020-10-25 09:28:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 998
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20721959
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FrenchKey/pseuds/FrenchKey, https://archiveofourown.org/users/JayofOlympus/pseuds/JayofOlympus
Summary: Clint looks good holding a sword, and Pepper is going to tear her hair out if Mercutio and Tybalt don't quit flirting.





	Put Thy Rapier up

**Author's Note:**

> For WinterHawk Week 2019, prompt 'Forbidden Love'. Enjoy.
> 
> Cast:
> 
> Romeo - Natasha Romanoff  
Juliet - Carol Danvers  
Mercutio - Clint Barton  
Tybalt - James Barnes  
Benvolio - T’Challa  
Friar Laurence - Sam Wilson  
Prince of Verona - Thor  
Paris - Peter Quill  
Montague - Rhodey  
Capulet - Loki  
Lady Montague - Sharon Carter  
Lady Capulet - Scott Lang  
Nurse - Tony Stark  
Narrator - Wanda Maximoff

‘Tybalt, you rat-catcher! Will you walk?’ Clint held his sword up, challengingly. He would much rather have a real fencing saber in hand, but Pepper had nixed that as soon as the suggestion was out of his mouth. He knew how to handle a fencing saber properly, but the prop felt awkward.

He smirked across the stage at Bucky, watching the way he bit his lip at the sight of Clint’s easy confidence. Oh yeah, he knew he looked good with a sword in his hand.

‘What wouldst thou have with me?’ Bucky drawled in response, sauntering forward. He looked like he was trying to project the same cocky sureness as Clint was managing. He was letting his eyes drift down Clint’s body. He was either blatantly checking Clint out or, more likely, trying to see how he managed to make his hips look so loose and sinuous while still staying upright. It was a talent that was not easy to replicate.

‘Good king of cats, nothing but one of your nine lives; that I mean to make bold withal, and as you shall use me hereafter,’ Clint said, flicking the tip of his sword up to point it toward Bucky’s throat, ‘Drybeat the rest of the eight. Will you pluck your sword out of his pitcher by the ears? Make haste, lest mine be about your ears ere it be out.’ The sword flicked down again as Clint finished speaking, an almost lazy gesture, while Clint shot Bucky another challenging smirk.

Bucky drew his own rapier, crossed it with Clint’s and stepped in close, until they were almost nose to nose. Clint had to cross his eyes to keep him in view. ‘I am for you,’ Bucky purred, as close as possible to a whisper as he could manage while still being heard by the audience.

‘Gentle Mercutio, put thy rapier up,’ Nat drawled, rolling their eyes with a sigh. ‘Seriously, Clint, put it away,’ they added, leaning over to flick him in the temple.

Clint flinched away and winced as Bucky’s prop sword came down on his shoulder. ‘Nat, what the fuck?’ he cried, slapping their hand away. ‘Uncalled for!’

‘Honestly, boys,’ they drawled, ‘You’re meant to be sword fighting not _sword fighting_.’ The emphasis they put on the last couple of words showed exactly what they meant by that. Bucky blushed bright red at Clint.

Clint scratched the back of his neck. ‘It’s a character choice?’ he offered, grinning at Nat sheepishly. T’Challa raised an eyebrow at him from where he stood beside Nat, apparently equally unimpressed.

‘Character choice my ass,’ Pepper said, giving him a flat look from offstage. ‘You’re meant to be trying to start a fight, not trying to get laid. Tone down the smirking and the snake hips and do it properly this time.’

‘Fiiiiine,’ Clint sighed, winking at Bucky as he wandered back to his starting position. Bucky sputtered a bit and barely managed not to trip over his own feet.

‘You can bang later,’ Nat huffed, ‘Try to act like you hate each other, please.’

They reset the stage and tried again. They managed to get through the scene without anyone calling Clint out again, which he was thankful for, though T’Challa and Nat both managed to ‘accidentally’ kick his ankles a couple times before he made it offstage. He couldn’t help they way he moved when he was holding a sword. It was the same as when he held a bow. The natural performer in him came to life, and he found himself playing up the deadly grace of either weapon, exactly as he’d been taught to.

He caught Bucky after the rehearsal, dodging past Steve and the rest of the set designers to get to him.

‘Hey, so, uh,’ he stammered, his confidence gone, left behind on the stage and in the prop bin. ‘I mean, um, I was gonna say, do you wanna… I can offer you some pointers, on sword fighting, if you like. I ah, I noticed you didn’t seem too comfortable up there with it.’ He groaned internally and glanced around for the nearest wall to brain himself on. What was he thinking, insulting Bucky’s performance?

Bucky snorted, ‘Tips on sword fighting or on _sword fighting_,’ he asked, smirking.

‘Well,’ Clint said, laughing, ‘I meant sword fighting, but we could do a bit of the other thing too, if you wanted?’ He ducked his head and scuffed his foot a little. He tried not to panic about what he’d just said. Bucky was obviously joking. Maybe he could play it off as a joke? Because people joked about wanting to bang their kind-of-maybe friends all the time.

‘I don’t think I need any tips on sword fighting,’ Bucky said with a grin, ‘But maybe you could let me know for sure?’

Clint gaped at him in a way that he was sure was utterly unattractive. ‘Seriously?’ he squeaked.

‘Well, maybe coffee first?’ Bucky suggested, winking at him. ‘Uh, coffee, yeah,’ Clint said, probably looking like an idiot. Bucky was probably regretting this already. ‘I can do coffee.’

‘Hallelujah, praise Thor,’ Tony cried, throwing an arm around each of their shoulders. ‘I thought we were gonna be stuck watching all of your ridiculous tension manifest itself on stage. We were concerned that it was gonna cause an Incident. We don’t need any more of those. Not after the Puck thing last year.’ He shuddered dramatically and shot a look at Loki, who flipped him off.

Bucky shrugged him off, but smiled. ‘So, wanna go to Bean There or to The Nest?’ he asked, slipping his hand into Clint’s and bumping their shoulders together gently.

Clint leaned into his warmth and grinned. ‘The Nest sounds good,’ he said, trying not to blush. He’d never been more grateful for how good he looked with a sword in hand. If it weren’t for that, he’d have probably ended the semester still pining a little. Just a little.


End file.
